Weekly Recap: Bitcoin Tops $73K after Iran Ceasefire

Happy weekend, Defiers!

Bitcoin surged past $73,000 this week as traders digested a hot CPI print and a fragile US-Iran ceasefire. But beneath the headline rally, DeFi's fault lines were on full display.

World Liberty Financial, the Trump family's DeFi venture, is under scrutiny after routing 3 billion WLFI into Dolomite as collateral, and borrowing roughly $75 million in stablecoins against them.

Meanwhile, Aave's governance token is now down 75% from its August highs as a third major contributor headed for the exits. And over on Bittensor, a prominent subnet developer accused the network's founder of "decentralization theatre."

Even the plumbing is getting scrutinized: an analysis from M0 CEO Luca Prosperi ignited debate over whether Morpho vault depositors are getting a raw deal, or whether DeFi lending is working exactly as designed.

Enjoy!

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Top Stories This Week

Bitcoin Surges Past $73,000 as Hot CPI Meets Fragile Ceasefire

Bitcoin surged past $73,000 on Friday, pushing its weekly gains to nearly 10%, as traders weighed a hotter-than-expected March CPI report against a still-fragile US-Iran ceasefire.

World Liberty Financial Has Borrowed Millions Against Its Own Token

World Liberty Financial, the DeFi venture affiliated with the Trump family, leveraged its treasury to borrow roughly $75 million in stablecoins from lending protocol Dolomite.

On-chain data shows WLFI's treasury multisig routed approximately 3 billion WLFI tokens through an intermediary wallet over the past week before depositing the full amount into Dolomite as collateral.

AAVE Slides as Contributor Departures Weigh on DeFi's Largest Lender

AAVE fell as low as $85 on Tuesday, extending a selloff that has now erased roughly 75% of its value since its August 2025 high near $356.

The token has been underperforming the broader market amid an escalating governance dispute that has cost the protocol three prominent independent contributors.

DeFi Lending's Risk-Reward Ratio Sparks Debate Between Researchers and Curators

A quantitative analyis authored by M0 CEO Luca Prosperi sparked a debate over whether Morpho vault depositors are being systematically undercompensated, or whether the lending primitive is working exactly as it should.

TAO Tanks 20% as Major Subnet Developer Accuses Bittensor Founder of 'Decentralization Theatre'

The founder of Covenant AI announced the project's departure from Bittensor, kicking off public accusations from both sides, and sending the subnet ecosystem tumbling.

Trending

• Bitcoin Surges Past $73,000 as Hot CPI Meets Fragile Ceasefire
• Velora DAO Votes to Wind Down, Hand Operations to Laita Labs
• TAO Tanks 20% as Major Subnet Developer Accuses Bittensor Founder of 'Decentralization Theatre'
• Bitcoin Holds Above $72,000 as Ceasefire Rally Stalls
• Polygon, Frax and Curve Launch Onchain Forex Liquidity Pools
• StarkWare Researcher Publishes Quantum-Safe Bitcoin Transaction Scheme

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